Dr. Christine Royce reports from the Sino–US Science and Education Forum in Shanghai.

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Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Where did Monday go … well, due to the time difference, the delegation didn’t actually arrive until Monday evening … so today was the first day of the Forum. Some members of the delegation headed over this morning to an optional event—the Shanghai International Forum on Science Literacy of Precollege Students, while others took advantage of the down time to either relax, sleep in, or wander around the Yu Garden area, which is home to a series of shops and bazaars selling everything from silk scarves to Chinese tea to pearls.
The actual opening of the US–Sino Forum began after lunch at the Sinan Building which is where we heard the opening ceremony and keynote speeches. Opening comments were given by Mme. Chen Saijuan from CACSI (Chinese Association of Children’s Science Instructors” and Dr. Francis Eberle, Executive Director of NSTA. During Francis’s opening comments, he remarked that the differences between our countries are as important as the commonalities as we have much to learn and share. He further commented that the future of both countries is tied to science and education. This struck me as an important point, because earlier that morning, I took full advantage of trying to regulate my clock by sleeping in a bit and then wandering around Yu Gardens. While there with a colleague Steve Rich, we came across a group of upper elementary school girls in their uniforms, complete with backpacks and what appeared to be a worksheet in hand. Steve and I immediately assumed that they had a series of tasks to complete while there as they looked like they were searching for specific locations (albeit stopping and sharing in the treats for purchase as well). It was interesting to see these school aged children from China acting just like I have observed school age children from the United States doing. They were writing things down when they “got an answer”; laughing and joking with each other and they were obviously engaged in this time outside of the traditional classroom.

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I have yet to visit a Chinese school so I am not sure what their traditional classroom even looks like, however, there were many similarities between my observations of these children and those from my home state. I don’t know what subject they were trying to do or even if they were there for school reasons. I am assuming so as it was mid morning which is after the “normal” school start time and they were in uniforms complete with backpacks. I noticed the similarities first, rather than the differences which brings me back to Francis’s opening points. There are many similarities to my home world even in this bustling city. I have yet to feel “out of my element” or “in a foreign land” if you will—rather I found it easy to read the street signs while on the bus yesterday and today (even though I have no orientation as to where I am going); could locate the traditional types of stores—convenience stores, fresh fruit stands, tourist places and yes—even a Pizza Hut and McDonalds; and most of all, I was able to navigate around a new city with some basic skills and a map. The hardest part of the trip so far was figuring out how to turn the lights on in my hotel room and then keep them on (one must insert their key card into a wall slot while in the room for the lights to remain on—once removed, the lights shut off in a few minutes which is one way to conserve energy I guess).
Following the opening comments, we had the pleasure to hear a keynote speech from both the Chinese Science Educators and the US delegation. Mme Wei Yu is an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering as well as holding many offices in associations such as the Chinese Association for Science and Technology. She is internationally cited for her efforts in promoting “Learning by Doing” which is an inquiry-based science education project for grades one to six. Her presentation focused on her work in designing and implementing “Learning by Doing” and the successes she has had as well as the challenges she has faced. One of the points she reiterated was that science and education are important to strategic issues that affect our future. She also stated that science teachers are essential to reform … so we must share both countries experiences of teachers because we can learn from each other and inspire each other.  The US Keynote was given by Dr. Norman Lederman, who is Chair and Professor of Mathematics and Science Education at the Illinois Institute of Technology. His speech also focused on the promise and challenges of science education reform in the United States.
Throughout both presentations, many commonalities emerged—that both countries have teachers who put effort into and are dedicated to their fields; that global issues need to be addressed and worked on together—because we have much to share with each other; that evidenced based and science based reform requires teacher training and money; and that both the US and Chinese views on elementary science education are not always at the forefront of the daily teaching agenda since there is no mandatory test that measures young student learning. The first several were interesting to hear, but the last one was somewhat of a surprise for me. It appears that both countries teachers of science are fighting to make science a subject that receives priority in schools. The differences were few but demonstrated the major difference between our countries. China has a national curriculum and can guide what happens in all schools from as Mme Wei Yu stated a “top down approach” where as the US has local control of schools. Another difference that was illustrated related to Dr. Lederman’s statement that often there is “teacher resistance to change” in our country since it is often a swinging pendulum in the education arena, however, teachers “follow” the directives that are provided by the Ministry of Education in China. Before I get emails, I am not making a judgment regarding which it should be or why as I do not have enough information about the Chinese system to draw a fair comparison, rather I am just simply stating one difference that was clearly pointed out.
Regardless of which you focus on, the similarities or the differences, there is no doubt that both countries delegations have entered into the inaugural US–Sino Forum on Science and Education with open minds in order to build on a commonality—an obvious passion for our field and desire to improve education for our students.

One of the conference highlights is visiting the exhibits—a great way to preview materials or software, create a wish list of equipment, add to a professional library, or meet new people. Many vendors have give-aways such as maps, pens, rulers, posters, samples, or brochures that, although they don’t seem like much, are really helpful to teachers.

When I’m at an NSTA conference, I try to attend a session on a topic about which I know very little. This time, I saw a session entitled Epigenetics: Beyond the Central Dogma. After a brief discussion of research on how the environment interacts with the epigenome (a layer of biochemical reactions that turns genes on and off), I must admit I was still a little lost. But then the presenter Louisa Stark from the University of Utah guided us (using a handout and a video) through the process of making a DNA and histone model, demonstrating accessible and inaccessible DNA. My own personal lightbulb went off! She shared two websites: Learn Genetics and Teach Genetics that include sections on epigenetics.  I spent quite a bit of time exploring them on my own with more light bulbs going off in my head!
A session on the modeling project WikiWatershed was presented by a team who is developing this amazing resource. With this model, Susan Gill (from the Stroud Water Research Center) and Nanette Marcum-Dietrich (from Millersville University) modeled how students can explore their own watershed environment using real-time data. They’re starting with the Delaware River watershed in southeastern PA, but it’s easy to see the potential for a nationwide (or even global) expansion. Several teachers (Elizabeth Harvey, Isabel Pilling, and Thomas Gaffney from The School District of Philadelphia and Melissa Hess from the Conestoga Valley SD) shared their classroom experiences in using the model and lessons they are developing.

Dr. Christine Royce, a member of the NSTA contingent at the Sino–US Science and Education Forum in Shanghai this week, has posted the following report. Dr. Royce is an Associate Professor of Education at Shippensburg State University and an NSTA Division Director.

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Sunday, November 14, 2010

According to the information about “My Flight” on the in seat monitor in front of me, it is 10:32 p.m. departure time and 11:32 a.m. at our arrival destination and the plane is somewhere north of the East Siberian Sea and Russia. We have 7 hours and 17 minutes of flying left, which means we are just about half way there.

Where is there? There is Shanghai, China and this particular flight has on board sixteen—well, maybe seventeen—of the members of the US team headed to Shanghai as part of the NSTA delegation to the US–Sino Forum on Science and Education which is to be held November 15–21, 2010.
I say “maybe 17” members because that is the number that was supposed to be on board, but we weren’t quite sure if all members made the flight. All of us haven’t yet met formally, some of us know each other from different activities, organizations, or past conferences. Some of us are meeting each other for the first time. As our group gathered at gate A56, we each greeted and hugged others we knew, introduced each to others that were new to us, and started to become a larger group. We switched off watching our accumulating carry on luggage to run and exchange currency, get something to eat, and use the facilities. Our boarding passes were stamped after visas checked, and within a very short time of arriving at the gate, we were boarding the 777 and headed to Shanghai. Once on board, the chatter between group members continued, as many of us were seated close to each other. It is obvious that there is energy and excitement among the team members from our sharing of preparation experiences.


In total, there will be fifty members of this group who will convene in Shanghai and engage in conversations, discussions, and the sharing of ideas related to science education over the next several days. The travel was varied, each of us leaving our own home cities across the United States, merging in small groups at larger airports around the country, some of which included Los Angeles, San Francisco, and our group’s departure point of Detroit. Some team members who were leaving from different airports were in contact via text, phone, and email right up until the doors of the plane closed.
Throughout the last several months, NSTA members and science educators from across the country looked forward to this trip. People expressed an interest in participating, worked with Michelle at headquarters on applying for visas, were sent updates to the schedule as they became available and were reminded to “remain flexible”, and generally looked forward to the opportunity to learn about science and education in another country. During the application process, we were required to provide a statement of why we wanted to participate in this experience on our interest form so that the committee had information as they selected members of the delegation. Part of my narrative stated as “I believe that this specific forum will provide me with the ability to take my learning as an educator outside of the classroom and into a global arena, thus helping me to add additional knowledge in many professional areas. When it comes to the field of science education, we have as much to share with, as well as, learn from our Chinese counterparts. I hope this trip will provide that sharing opportunity that will serve as a connection point and bridge to future experiences and collaborations. In summary, the main reason that I am interested in attending this program is that I believe ‘experience is the best educator … even for an educator.'” And for all of my friends out there—yes part of my reason was this just sounded like an outstanding opportunity to do something I am passionate about—go and be with “my own kind”—science educators who share a love and passion for our field.

Over the next week, the NSTA group will meet with the CACSI group from China. CASCI is the Chinese Association for Children’s Science Instructors. I will blog more about the talks, meetings, and opportunities to visit schools and see local sights in the days ahead, but it is important to realize that this opportunity and experience is a dichotomy. It is really no different than other experiences we have all engaged in previously and will continue to do so in the future while at the same time this opportunity is extremely different. There is no doubt that people who know each other, as well as those who are just meeting for the first time and board planes to meet half way around the world is a bit exciting and adventuresome, but we as individuals do similar things each day in our “normal” lives as well. We as individuals go to class, meetings, and other events to form small groups of those we know only to be introduced to new colleagues or classmates and to form a larger group. The question that arises is in both situations, is “do we take advantage of the learning opportunities that present themselves” whether local or global?
According to that in-flight monitor in front of me, our group is scheduled to land at approximately 6:52 p.m. local time in Shanghai which would be early. And on that note, as I am somewhere between departure and arrival, I will sign off for now and try and catch some sleep.

Here’s what I love about the early childhood education community: the communication, sharing thoughts and wonderings!
In the November 2010 Early Years column in NSTA’s elementary school journal, Science and Children, I wrote about how children’s drawings, discussions and writings document their work. I heard additional thoughts back from two educators.
I wrote that, “A child’s drawings of a beetle with  a happy face or a tree with a round circle of leaves on top of a straight trunk are typical representations, which are more like symbols than actual observations. With repeated observation and documentation, children include more details and provide fuller dictations, even if they are not able to draw accurately. A typically developing child who spent a lot of time observing and handling Tenebrio beetles at 4 and 5 years old created wobbly drawings and offered detailed (dictated) descriptions. While drawing the larva at age 4, the child said, “It only has legs in the front,” but at age 5 drawing the beetle the child dictated, “I saw the wings come out. And they have protector wings like ladybugs and the real wings that make it fly are under the protector wings. The underwings are clear. When it was on my hand it flew.””

Early childhood teacher Marie Faust Evitt* wrote that she was “so glad you mentioned the happy face on the beetle. Saying initial drawings may be more like what they think they should see than what they actually see—is beautiful. I noticed something similar during our recent bean seed sprouting explorations. The first time children drew pictures of their seeds in their science journals, several gave the seeds smiles. Also, they dictated stories about the seeds rather than describing what the seeds actually looked like. Their drawings and observations became more accurate each day as they observed the roots and shoots sprouting and growing. The repeated experiences of recording observations in their journals made the children truly feel like scientists.”

*Author of Thinking BIG, Learning BIG: Connecting Science, Math, Literacy, and Language in Early Childhood, with T. Dobbins, and B. Weesen-Baer. 2009. Silver Spring, MD: Gryphon House. A complete curriculum with science inquiry at the forefront, many projects on a grand scale, alignment with national standards, and an extensive book list for every chapter with descriptions to take the guesswork out of which book to borrow or buy.

Ted Chittenden, assessment advisor to the Science and Nature Program for Young Children, at the American Museum of Natural History wrote to share his speculations.

Sometimes the children make drawings of what they observe in the Museum classroom, in this case, various invertebrates (alive, from classroom habitats.) Quite often, an otherwise anatomically, fairly accurate drawing will feature a happy face!!! I have seen this sort of face in previous projects over the years with Kindergarten and primary teachers.

As I think about this, I wonder if the faces are actually an indication of children’s growing awareness of the diversity of life. It’s if they are saying, “It’s a living thing too … like me.” Whether a beetle, cockroach, worm or whatever, “It has a life.” My speculation is supported by comments from parents. Every year in this program we ask parents to report observations of anything their child said or did, away from the Museum that might indicate a connection to the Museum program experiences. And every year we get anecdotes about the awareness of, and sometimes advocacy for, nature. Here are few quotes; “He told his father that a spider lives in the bath tub drain, and not to flush it.” “My daughter told me to stop killing the roaches because they are alive too.” “She found a dead butterfly on the street, asked many questions about how it died, took it home, wanted to revive it.”

In general, it seems to me that children’s drawings of animals are a blend of what is noticed, seen, with what is understood or otherwise important to say. Their drawings do indeed reveal attention to detail—perhaps the jointed legs of a beetle, or the segments of a millipede; but other features of the drawings give the animal a life … such as a leaf “for it to eat” or a rock “to hide under”—and maybe a smiley face.

I see Ted’s point that a happy face may be a symbol of children’s understanding that they are in the same group as the insect or seed—another living thing! In this light I will welcome happy faces in first drawings (and in all imaginative drawings, of course). Although I never discourage children from making their drawings of animals and plants look something like people, I do guide them to also get a close-up view of the anatomy of the living thing, and try to draw what they see. Happy faces and insect heads with antennae and palps can co-exist in early childhood classrooms.
In the interest of doing good science, I need to remember to consider alternative explanations!
Peggy

Two of the sessions I attended today were presented by classroom teachers who have found new ways to develop their leadership skills.
Lindsay Knippenberg, a science teacher from Michigan, is an Einstein Fellow with NOAA. In her presentation she shared some of the resources available to teachers (free of charge) from federal scientific agencies. Among her favorites are those that help students learn to differentiate long-term climate trends from daily weather reports, such as NOAA Climate Services, Data in the Classroom (also from NOAA with lessons to scaffold inquiry on topics related to El Nino, sea level, and water quality), Free Data,  and CLEAN (Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network)  with peer-reviewed lessons. She also introduced the NOAA Education Resources portal  which gives teachers access to materials, graphics, and lessons gleaned from the many NOAA agency sites.

Preston Lewis was a ninth-grade science teacher who turned a layoff into a new career at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Virginia. He demonstrated NASA’s S’COOL project  which turns K-12 students (and their teachers) into cloud watchers who supplement NASA satellite data with on-the-ground observations of clouds and cloud cover timed to when the satellite is passing over their school. This authentic, citizen-science project engages classrooms from around the world. The data is available to anyone via the website.
Both of these educators feel that their own classroom experience adds a new dimension to these programs, because they understand the challenges faced by teachers. But they also see the potential of their projects in turning students on to science with real-word applications.

NSTA must be in Nature’s good graces, because this was a perfect day to arrive in Baltimore for the area conference—blue skies and warm (for November) temperatures. Some of the eateries near the Inner Harbor are still using their outdoor tables, too.
The Inner Harbor is terrific, with each end anchored by a science-related site: the National Aquarium and the Maryland Science Center. The Baltimore city planners had the right idea, putting a convention center, the football stadium, the baseball stadium, and mass transit stops all within a few walkable blocks of the Inner Harbor. There are lots of hotels, restaurants, and shopping in a vibrant urban setting, where a car is not a necessity (the water taxis are more scenic, anyway).
Time to grab a Chesapeake Bay crabcake and pick up the name badge holder and program at the registration desk. I hear the bookstore is open, too. Maybe I’ll avoid the rush and update my library now.
Photo:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/kevinl8888/3453707101/

I just got back from the NSTA area conference in Kansas City, Missouri, and I’d like to try presenting. My colleagues and I have some successful ideas we’d like to share, but I’m a little nervous about submitting a proposal and actually doing a presentation. Any suggestions?—Ally, Omaha, Nebraska
It’s ironic: we spend more than 180 days a year in front of students, but we get nervous in front of our peers. Sharing your experience and expertise is an important step in your own professional development. Teachers like to hear about practical, classroom-tested activities and strategies, and I’ve found most conference participants are attentive and courteous to the presenters.
Conference proposals are typically due several months before the conference to provide the organizers with time to select and schedule the sessions. Check the sponsoring organization’s website for proposal guidelines, deadlines, and the online submission process. If you’re thinking of future NSTA conferences, see the guidelines at Presenting at NSTA Conferences.

Conferences usually receive more proposals than there are time slots, so follow the guidelines to improve your chances of getting in the program. Depending on the organization, you’ll be asked to supply a title, a brief description for the program, and perhaps a longer abstract describing the session content and activities. Choose a topic relevant to participants that relates to the conference theme and national standards. If you describe a project specific to your school, try to show how it could be adapted to other schools, grade levels, or geographic regions. Use this year’s program for ideas for your title and description. Indicate the format of the presentation and whether there will be opportunities for discussion, hands-on activities, or demonstrations. Reflect on the sessions you attended. What made them successful? What would you have done differently?
There may also be a section for you to indicate what technology you need. Many conference venues are now providing LCD projectors, but you’ll probably have to bring your own laptop and speakers (if you need them). Be sure to bring any other cables or interfaces (such as the video adapter needed for a Mac–I’ve learned from experience) and an extension cord. Put your presentation on a flash drive in case you need to use someone else’s computer.
There seems to be a trend in recent years to cut back on handouts. Many presenters share a brief outline and direct participants to a website with other resources, reducing the amount of paper used. If you do need large handouts or materials for a hands-on activity, consider shipping them to your hotel ahead of time if you’re getting to the conference by plane or train. A wheeled suitcase can be used to transport materials to and from the conference venue.
If you use photographs or videos of students or colleagues, be sure you have the appropriate release forms. Also document your sources if you cite published information or use “borrowed” materials. Allow enough time for questions or comments.
If you’re co-presenting with colleagues, determine who will do each part and how to transition between presenters. Before the conference, do a dress rehearsal to finalize the time and flow of the presentation. Perhaps you could do this at a faculty or department meeting to get feedback from other teachers (think of it as a formative assessment).
Most organizations do not compensate the presenters, and you’ll be required to register for the conference. Be sure you and your co-presenters can get release time for the conference and ask if the school can assist with expenses.
Presenting at a conference is a professional accomplishment. After your session, prepare a brief summary to share with your school administrators or for the school newsletter. Include the title of the session, the date, and the location of the conference on your vita.
Remember, don’t despair if your proposal is not accepted. (I have a folder full of “we’re sorry” notes). It’s a challenge for the program committee to review and prioritize thousands of proposals. You can revise the proposal and resubmit at a later time or to a different conference.
Last year I presented at a national conference, and it was a great experience. My colleagues and I enjoyed collaborating on the presentation, and once the initial jitters were over, we relaxed and had some good discussions with the participants. It was gratifying when several of them came up to us afterward and said, “This is exactly what we needed. Thank you.”